Epic Associates 84-III, William C. Griffith, Jr. - Page 170




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             v. Commissioner, supra at 1019-1021, we described these                  
             approaches as follows:                                                   

                       There are various approaches which may be                      
                  taken in establishing whether a purchaser may                       
                  treat a nonrecourse liability as a bona fide                        
                  debt.  One, originating in Estate of Franklin                       
                  v. Commissioner, 544 F.2d 1045 (9th Cir. 1976),                     
                  affg. 64 T.C. 752 (1975), indicates that when                       
                  the amount of the aggregate purchase price                          
                  unreasonably exceeds the value of the property                      
                  securing the note (or when the principal amount                     
                  of the note unreasonably exceeds the value of                       
                  the property securing the note), the debt will                      
                  not be recognized.  In such instance, the                           
                  purchaser acquires no equity in the property                        
                  by making payments and, therefore, would have                       
                  no economic incentive to pay off the note.                          
                  Estate of Franklin v. Commissioner, supra at                        
                  1048-1049.  The Estate of Franklin analysis,                        
                  comparing the purchase price and size of the                        
                  note to the fair market value of the property                       
                  at the time of purchase, originated in real                         
                  estate transactions (see Estate of Franklin v.                      
                  Commissioner, supra; Narver v. Commissioner,                        
                  75 T.C. 53 (1980), affd. per curiam 670 F.2d                        
                  855 (9th Cir. 1982); Beck v. Commissioner, 74                       
                  T.C. 1534 (1980), affd. 678 F.2d 818 (9th Cir.                      
                  1982)), but has also been applied to the                            
                  purchase of cattle (see Hager v. Commissioner,                      
                  supra), and, more recently, to movies (see                          
                  Wildman v. Commissioner, supra; Siegel v.                           
                  Commissioner, supra; Brannen v. Commissioner,                       
                  supra).                                                             
                       Another line of cases, in many ways compli-                    
                  mentary to the above, more closely addresses                        
                  the problem of bona fide loans where the sole                       
                  security for such loans is a speculative asset                      
                  with an undeterminable value at the time of                         
                  purchase.  This line of decisions holds that                        
                  highly contingent or speculative obligations                        
                  are not recognized for tax purposes until the                       
                  uncertainty surrounding them is resolved.  CRC                      
                  Corp. v. Commissioner, 693 F.2d 281 (3d Cir.                        






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